Your agent found the tenant. Who handles everything that comes next?
Finding a tenant is only the beginning. In this week's article, Katie explains why the real work starts after the keys are handed over, from maintenance and compliance to rent reviews and renewals, and why many landlords discover that full management is worth far more than they expected.
Finding a Tenant Is the Easy Part. Managing What Follows Is Where It Gets Serious.
The lettings process feels like the main event.
The photographs. The listing. The viewings. The referencing. The agreement. The moment the tenant picks up the keys.
It feels like progress because things are visibly happening. And then the tenant is in and everything goes quiet.
But the tenancy itself — which might run for two, three, five years — is where the real work of property management lives. And on a let-only arrangement, every bit of that work sits with you.
What the life of a tenancy actually involves
Rent collection every month. Chasing when it is late. Maintenance requests that need responding to promptly and properly resolved. An annual gas safety inspection and certificate. An EICR every five years. Property visits to check on condition. A rent review at the right point. A renewal to negotiate when the fixed term ends. A check-out to manage when the tenant eventually leaves.
That is not a passive income stream. That is an ongoing set of obligations, conversations and decisions.
For a landlord with one property who has the time and the appetite for it, managing all of that themselves is achievable.
For a landlord with two or three properties, or one who works full-time and has limited hours to give, the picture changes quickly.
Where let-only falls short
A let-only service is designed to solve one specific problem. Getting a good tenant into the property.
It is not designed to manage the relationship over the years that follow, keep your legal position protected, maintain the asset properly or grow your returns over time.
That is not a criticism. It is just what let-only is.
The question is whether the landlord on the other end of it has genuinely thought through what they are taking on for the next few years.
In my experience, a lot of landlords who go let-only underestimate it. Not because they are not capable people, but because the reality of an ongoing tenancy is harder to picture in advance than the process of finding the tenant.
Your action point this week
Make a list of every obligation attached to your current tenancies.
Then honestly ask yourself whether you have a clear system for managing all of them. Or whether you are managing it roughly rather than precisely.
If the answer is roughly, it might be time to think about proper support.
If you are on a let-only arrangement and you are starting to wonder whether it is actually working for you, come and talk to us. Switching to full management is a lot simpler than most landlords expect, and we will walk you through exactly what it involves. Call us on 01204 659670, email katie@harrisonsnet.co.uk or visit harrisonsnet.co.uk.
Here's to your property success!
Katie
Harrisons Estate Agents
01204 659670 | katie@harrisonsnet.co.uk | harrisonsnet.co.uk